Herbal Medicine

Is there a space for herbal traditions in modern medicine?

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Essay

“...its aim is not to cure illnesses but to help manage pain and maintain health.”

Although having been used for over 5000 years, with the first records found in Ancient Mesopotamia, herbal remedies remain a controversial topic among the healthcare community. Prior to modern medicine, plants were used as the main activator to heal diseases, and in continents like Africa and Asia, it is still the leading treatment option. 

Herbal traditions have helped pave the path to many currently used medicine. The most renowned modern drug worldwide, aspirin, would not have been possible without the Egyptians and Sumerians. Over 3500 years ago they used willow bark as a painkiller. In 300 BC, this tradition developed in Greece into willow-leaf tea. Modern aspirin derives from this natural compound and it was in 1828 that the first extraction of this active ingredient was successful. Over the years and throughout continents, more discoveries were made until 1899 when aspirin was given its name (Connelly, D. 2014). 

The reason herbal medicine is so discredited is due to the fact that there is no data to prove its results, its aim is not to cure illnesses but to help manage pain and maintain health. Plants such as St. John’s Worts, which can be traced back to Ancient Greece, are used in teas and said to alleviate symptoms from depression to healing wounds. For mental illnesses especially, there is no cure or modern treatment further than antidepressants, which are not always accessible or effective. There has been a rise in the use of St. John's Worts in the US after multiple trials have been published. These suggest that this plant extract may be as useful as conventional antidepressants with an odds ratio of 1.10; 93 to 1.31 to alleviate the symptoms of mild to severe depression (Ernst, E. 2000).

Despite this, there is currently not enough research for herbal traditions to be accepted by the healthcare community. The lack of evidence on the long-term effects of the plants prevents herbal traditions from being sold as anything but food supplements. Moreover, an issue that may arise if medical professionals do not begin to test and monitor herbal medicine is the side effects of combining herbal treatments with modern ones. The active ingredient in the herbal remedy could block or increase the potency of the modern drug. St John’s Worts for instance, if taken with modern antidepressants can be dangerous and can prevent the pill from working (NHS.uk). 

In conclusion, herbal traditions will never replace modern medical treatments such as chemotherapy, or insulin but if researched more, some herbal traditions could become more accessible alternatives for some medications that may cause severe side effects or may not work on some people.

Bibliography

1. "Connelly, D. (2014) A history of aspirin, The Pharmaceutical Journal. Available at: https://pharmaceutical-journal.com/article/infographics/a-history-of-aspirin (Accessed: April 1, 2023).

2. U.S. National Library of Medicine. Available at: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC1127780/ (Accessed: April 1, 2023).

3. Review highlights the danger of mixing herbal remedies with prescription drugs (no date) NICS Well. NHS.uk. Available at: https://www.nicswell.co.uk/health-news/review-highlights-the-danger-of-mixing-herbal-remedies-with-prescription-drugs (Accessed: April 1, 2023).